Olympic flavour to CHIO dressage
The Nations Cup at the upcoming CHIO Rotterdam will have a clear Olympic flavour. With the teams of Germany, UK, France, Portugal, Sweden, the USA and of course the TeamNL riders in the 5* dressage classes from June 18 - 21. And with the Olympics in perspective we expect the chef d'equipes to bring strong teams to Rotterdam.
Besides the nations teams we also will have the judges who will act in Tokio at the 72nd CHIO Rotterdam. Francis Verbeek (NL), Katrina Wüst (GER), Andrew Gardner (GBR), Hans-Christian Matthiesen (DEN) and Magnus Ringmark (SWE) will judge both the 5* as well as the 4* dressage classes. For both riders and judges this CHIO will be of major importance. On top of many individual competitors we will see a Belgian team competing in the 4* dressage.
"The dressage at this CHIO Rotterdam will be a very important observation for Olympics for the team coaches, says Patrick van der Meer, sports director Dressage. "I expect the chef d'equipes of the participating countries to use the event strategically to get certain combinations in Olympic shape and to impress the judges."
This year there is no official FEI Nations Cup Dressage series. Some international organizers, including CHIO Rotterdam, are invited to think with the FEI about the future of the competition.
photo credits: Caroline van der Vecht